Myra Tania De Groot (4 July 1937 – 4 April 1988) was a

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

-born theatre and television actress, and agent. She performed in the United Kingdom, United States, New Zealand and Australia.

Professional career

De Groot was born in

Westminster, London Westminster is an area of Central London, part of the wider City of Westminster. The area, which extends from the River Thames to Oxford Street, has many visitor attractions and historic landmarks, including the Palace of Westminster, Buckin ...

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, and performed as a child, from everything from a magician's assistant to a dancer, eventually appearing in West End comedy. Arriving in America from Britain in 1958 she appeared in roles for most of the 1960s there, appearing on TV series including ''

Bewitched ''Bewitched'' is an American fantasy sitcom television series that originally aired for eight seasons on ABC from September 17, 1964, to March 25, 1972. It is about a witch who marries an ordinary mortal man and vows to lead the life of a typic ...

'', ''

The Monkees The Monkees were an American rock and pop band, formed in Los Angeles in 1966, whose lineup consisted of the American actor/musicians Micky Dolenz, Michael Nesmith and Peter Tork alongside English actor/singer Davy Jones. The group was conc ...

'', ''

Perry Mason Perry Mason is a fictional character, an American criminal defense lawyer who is the main character in works of detective fiction written by Erle Stanley Gardner. Perry Mason features in 82 novels and 4 short stories, all of which involve a cli ...

'', and ''

Here Come the Brides ''Here Come the Brides'' is an American comedy Western series from Screen Gems that aired on the ABC television network from September 25, 1968 to April 3, 1970. It was loosely based on Asa Mercer's efforts in the 1860s to import marriageable wom ...

''. She performed at the noted

New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States New York may also refer to: Film and television * '' ...

cabaret "Upstairs at The Downstairs" in ''

Ben Bagley Ben Bagley (October 18, 1933 – March 21, 1998) was an American musical producer and record producer. Career Born in Burlington, Vermont, Bagley moved to New York during the early 1950s, and in 1955, at age 22, he produced his first hit, ''Shoes ...

s last review (''Seven Come Eleven'') in 1962 with Hal Buckley, Nancy Preiser and Cy Young. She left America and then resided in New Zealand between 1972–1980, where she appeared in many theatre roles and the 1978 film ''Angel Mine''. She also directed stage plays. Her latter career was based in Australia, after having emigrated there in 1980, with roles in serials ''

The Sullivans ''The Sullivans'' is an Australian period drama television series produced by Crawford Productions which ran on the Nine Network from 15 November 1976 until 10 March 1983. The series tells the story of a fictional average middle-clas ...

'', two roles in ''

Prisoner A prisoner (also known as an inmate or detainee) is a person who is deprived of liberty against their will. This can be by confinement, captivity, or forcible restraint. The term applies particularly to serving a prison sentence in a prison. ...

'', a few telemovies and the film ''

Norman Loves Rose ''Norman Loves Rose'' is a 1982 Australian comedy film.David Stratton, ''The Avocado Plantation: Boom and Bust in the Australian Film Industry'', Pan MacMillan, 1990 p330 Plot summary A 13-year-old Jewish boy (Norman) develops an obsession for ...

''. Her final role was in ''

Neighbours ''Neighbours'' is an Australian television soap opera, which has aired since 18 March 1985. It was created by television executive Reg Watson. The Seven Network commissioned the show following the success of Watson's earlier soap '' Sons an ...

'' as Eileen Clarke - a role in which De Groot appeared onscreen in the UK for fifteen months after she had died due to the fact the show aired significantly far behind the Australian airdate.

Filmography

FILM TELEVISION , - , ''

'' (TV series) , , 1967 , , Receptionist/Hazel Carter (episodes: How to Fall in Business with All Kinds of Help), (My What Big Ears You Have) , - , ''

'' , , 1968 , , Mary Friar (episode: Monkees Mind There Manor) , - , ''

Here Comes the Brides ''Here Come the Brides'' is an American comedy Western series from Screen Gems that aired on the ABC television network from September 25, 1968 to April 3, 1970. It was loosely based on Asa Mercer's efforts in the 1860s to import marriageable wo ...

'' (TV series) , , 1969 , , Maude , - , ''Buck House'' (TV series) , , 1974/1975 , , Mrs. Pratt , - , ''

'' (TV series) , , 1976 , , Laura Watkins , - , ''Angel Mine'' , , 1978 , , Nun , - , ''Air Hawk'' (TV movie) , , 1981 , , Aunt Ellie , - , ''

'' , , 1982 , , Mother , - , ''Zero Hero'' (TV movie) , , 1983 , , Mother 210 , - , '' Special Squad'' (TV series) , , 1984 , , Grace Kiddell , - , ''

'' , , 1980-1984 , , Sheila Hawkins/Barbara Krantz , - , ''

Carson's Law ''Carson's Law'' is an Australian television series made by Crawford Productions for the Ten Network between 1982-1984. The series was a period piece set in the 1920s and starred Lorraine Bayly as progressive solicitor Jennifer Carson. The epis ...

'' (TV series) , , 1984 , , Mrs. Cameron , - , ''Palace of Dreams'' (TV miniseries) , , 1985 , , Sima , - , ''The Far Country'' (TV miniseries) , , 1987 , , District Nurse , - , ''In Between'' (TV miniseries) , , 1987 , , Part Three , - , ''

'' (TV series) , , 1985-1988 , , Eileen Clarke (167 episodes) , -

Theatre

De Groot acted in the United Kingdom, New Zealand and Australia in a variety of roles on stage: *''Frome Here and There'' - Royal Court Theatre, London (1955) *''Mister Venus'' - Prince of Wales Theatre, London (1958) - as "Married woman" *''Ulysses in Nighttown'' - Arts Theatre, London (May 1959) - as Kitty *''

Pieces of Eight The Spanish dollar, also known as the piece of eight ( es, Real de a ocho, , , or ), is a silver coin of approximately diameter worth eight Spanish reales. It was minted in the Spanish Empire following a monetary reform in 1497 with content ...

'' - Apollo Theatre, London (September 1959) *''Seven Come Eleven'' - Upstairs at The Downstairs, New York (August 1962) *''Riverwind'' - Westport Country Playhouse, Wesport, CT (July 1966) *''

Mame MAME (formerly an acronym of Multiple Arcade Machine Emulator) is a free and open-source emulator designed to recreate the hardware of arcade game systems in software on modern personal computers and other platforms. Its intention is to preserve ...

'' - Honolulu Concert Hall, HI (June 1968) - as Agnes Gooch *''Mame'' - San Bernardino, CA (November 1970) - as Agnes Gooch *''There's a Leek in your Hat'' - Mercury Theatre, Auckland (October 1972) *''Tarantara! taranatara!'' - Mercury Theatre, Auckland (February 1976) *''Viva Mexico'' - North Shore Operatic Society, Auckland (March 1977) *''Noel & Cole'' - The Blue Cockatoo, Sydney (1982) *''

Torch Song Trilogy ''Torch Song Trilogy'' is a collection of three plays by Harvey Fierstein rendered in three acts: ''International Stud'', ''Fugue in a Nursery'', and ''Widows and Children First!'' The story centers on Arnold Beckoff, a Jewish homosexual, drag ...

'' - Her Majesty's Theatre, Sydney (1984) - as Mrs Beckoff *Spookhouse - Playbox Theatre, Melbourne (1987) *''

Nunsense ''Nunsense'' (1985) is a musical comedy with a book, music, and lyrics by Dan Goggin. Originating as a line of greeting cards, Goggin expanded the concept into a cabaret show that ran for 38 weeks, and eventually into a full-length musical. The o ...

'' - Comedy Theatre, Melbourne (1987) - as Sister Hubert

Personal life

Three times married, De Groot died from cancer, aged 50 on 4 April 1988. She is survived by five children and nine grandchildren.

References

External links

*
Article about Myra De Groot
* Brief excerpts o
Myra De Groot's appearances in Prisoner and Bewtitched
1937 births 1988 deaths English emigrants to Australia Deaths from cancer in Victoria (Australia) Australian soap opera actresses 20th-century Australian actresses People from Westminster {{Australia-tv-actor-stub